PORTUGAL: Filed a petition to the parliament to erase the legal entity of the Jehovah's Witness

A press release was unleashed to the portuguese news agency Lusa and all the main newspapers, TV and radio stations in Portugal. Ex-JW reddit communities in other EU countries are also promoting this petition now.

SUBJECT:
PUBLIC PETITION REQUESTS THE EXTINCTION OF THE "ASSOCIATION OF JEHOVAH'S
WITNESSES" AND THE CANCELLATION OF ITS STATUS OF RELIGION RECOGNIZED BY
THE PORTUGUESE STATE.

Lisbon,
February 9, 2018

March 9, 2018
marks the 40th anniversary of the publication in Diário da República, I Series
A, No. 57/78, of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; November 9, 2018
marks the 40th anniversary of the entry into force of the Portuguese legal
order of the European Convention on Human Rights. These conventions contain a
number of fundamental human rights, including the right to freedom of thought,
opinion and expression, the freedom to have a religion or to change one's
religion or belief, and not to be disturbed, discriminated against or
prejudiced by that.

In line with
these conventions, the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic enshrines a
number of rights, freedoms and personal guarantees, including the right to
freedom of conscience, religion and worship, as well as the right to freedom of
expression, association, the right to moral and physical integrity, the right
not to be treated with cruelty or inhumanity, the right to a good name and not
to be treated with discrimination, among others.

It sometimes
happens that the right to religious freedom conflicts with other fundamental
rights of individuals. What are the limits of religious freedom? Does the
freedom to practice a religion override other fundamental human rights? Can one
allow everything to a religious organization in the name of religious freedom
enshrined in the constitution? This is a debate that our society needs to make.

At stake is
the treatment of Jehovah's Witnesses to individuals, adults and minors, who for
some reason are no longer affiliated with this religious organization.
Jehovah's Witnesses have a practice of excommunication that entails the
complete social ostracization of former members and hatred of dissenters of
conscience; this institutionally taught and implemented practice separates
families and friends, causes deep psychological damage that can, ultimately,
end in suicide, coerces individuals, limits one's self-determination, destroys
one's self-esteem, and harms human dignity. Should a church that advocates
cruel, inhumane and law-breaking practices, and the violation of Constitutional
and human rights continue to receive official recognition of the state? Can and
should the state intervene to regulate this conflict and protect citizens?

A petition
was filed online to the parliament in order to request the extinction of the
collective religious entity representing Jehovah's Witnesses in Portugal and to
cancel their registration as a religious legal person, thus removing the status
of religion officially recognized by the Portuguese State, until this practice
of social ostracization is canceled definitively by the religious group and its
victims relieved of the suffering they are subjected to because of it. It is
very important to point out the following: It is not a matter of asking for the
proscription or banishment of this religion, nor of preventing individuals who
profess this faith from freely meeting or spreading their beliefs; we
understand that these are peaceful rights and do not conflict with other
individual rights. This petition addresses only the status of the collective
religious entity that represents them, and if the violation of human and
constitutional rights ceases in a satisfactory and permanent manner, we
understand that Jehovah's Witnesses should once again enjoy official
recognition.

We are
grateful for the attention and dissemination of the initiative and the
promotion of the debate on this theme in society. For more information you can
get the contacts of those who propose this initiative by sending a message to
the email: XXXXXX

**************

The petition has gathered 163 votes so far. If you are voting from outside Portugal, it would be interesting to say from what EU country you are voting from and also leave a comment.

The public won't be able to see the full name of the person. The petitioner won't be able to see the ID document number. After voting you will receive an email to reconfirm that you have voted. Remember, only votes from citizens from E.U. countries count, even if you are living outside the E.U.

Then, with 1000 signatures, the petition can not be dismissed on the basis of inadmissibility and the petitioner must be given an audience at the parliament to present the case. The petition also gets published in the official "Diário da República" paper, where all the laws are also published.